This non-provisional utility patent application is a continuation application of U.S. Non-Provisional patent Application Ser. No. 13/833,091, filed Mar. 15, 2013 to which priority is claimed under 35 U.S.C. § 120 and which is based upon and claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 120 to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/671,742 filed on Jul. 15, 2012 and to U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/728,891, filed on Nov. 21, 2012, to each of which provisional patent applications priority is hereby claimed under 35 U.S.C. § 120. Each application is hereby expressly incorporated by reference in its entirety.
The present invention relates generally to asphalt products, including processed asphalt compositions, that include recycled shingle material. More particularly the present invention relates to methods and apparatuses for forming processed asphalt suspensions, including mixing systems and process methods for creating performance enhanced asphalt compositions used in asphalt products.
Asphalt roofing shingles make up over two-thirds of the residential roofing market for both new homes and roof replacements. However, the high volume production of asphalt shingles leads to the production of significant waste, not only during the manufacture of the shingles, but also through removal (“tear-off”) of used shingles. In fact, it is estimated that 11 million tons of shingle waste is produced each year and approximately 10 million of these tons end up buried in landfills. The waste generated from the asphalt roofing products is concerning, since the shingles themselves do not degrade and stay permanently in the landfill. This and the fact that there is considerable raw material value in the shingles has resulted in significant efforts in recycling all types of roofing materials for a variety of purposes.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,848,755 to Zickell et al. discloses an asphalt roofing material recycling system used to recycle asphalt materials, such as asphalt shingles and tar paper that include granules, fibers or other particles. The asphalt material is simultaneously heated and milled in a heated milling apparatus, such as a heated ball mill, to reduce the size of the asphalt material granules in suspension in liquid asphalt.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,290,152 B1 to Zickell discloses that asphalt material is simultaneously heated and milled in a heated milling apparatus such as a heated ball mill. Excess moisture is removed from the asphalt material by continuously venting the heated ball mill apparatus.
U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2010/0129667 to Kalkanoglu et al. discloses roofing products that are made from recycled roofing materials. The recycled roofing materials can be processed in an attritor or other media mixer to reduce the size of roofing granules and fibers.